NHL: Philadelphia Flyers trade Shane Harper to Islanders

Adirondack Phantoms winger Shane Harper was traded to the New York Islanders on Wednesday.

GLENS FALLS -- Shane Harper was one of just four players to suit up for the Adirondack Phantoms in each season of their existence.

He probably won't be back for the team's fifth year in Glens Falls.

The Philadelphia Flyers dealt the winger, an impending restricted free agent, and a fourth-round pick in next year's National Hockey League draft to the New York Islanders on Wednesday for the rights to soon-to-be-unrestricted-free-agent defenseman Mark Streit, a perennial point-producer and former all-star that can significantly strengthen their blue line.

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The news did not come as a total surprise to Harper, a prolific scorer in junior hockey who struggled to replicate that success at the AHL level. He has recorded just 41 points in 143 games over four seasons.

After being twice demoted to the ECHL this past season, the last in his three-year, entry-level contract, Harper said he had an inclination that a change might be on the horizon.

That manifested itself Wednesday in the form of a phone call from Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren, who told the 24-year-old California native that he had been traded to the Islanders.

But Harper had not heard from his new organization as of early Wednesday evening, which left him with several unanswered questions about his future.

Because Harper's current contract is set to expire at the end of this season, the Islanders essentially traded for his rights. They must tender him a qualifying offer to keep him in the organization.

NHL teams can only sign 50 players to contracts. If Harper does not receive a qualifying offer from the Islanders, he would become an unrestricted free agent and free to sign with any team.

"That's kind of what I'm worried about," Harper said in a telephone interview.

"My agent said they have a lot of contracts and they've been actually not qualifying guys as of late. I'm not really getting my hopes up, but that's what I've heard from my agent. I might just be a free agent."

With the trade, Harper leaves the only professional hockey organization he has known.

He signed with the Flyers in 2010 as an undrafted free agent, and spent most of his pro career with the Phantoms in Glens Falls. He had nothing but positive things to say about his tenure with Adirondack.

"I really grew to like the area," Harper said. "It was just a good community, a smaller town. You would run into people that you knew. ... I met a girl there, I have a girlfriend there. The fans were really good. I enjoyed playing at the Civic Center, it was an exciting place to play. It was my first pro team. Obviously that brings back a lot of good memories, and I do appreciate everything they've done for me."

Harper's most productive season with the Phantoms came in 2011-12, when he produced 13 goals and 14 assists in 70 games and scored the overtime game-winner in the AHL Outdoor Classic at Citizens Bank Park. But he fell off sharply under Phantoms coach Terry Murray this season, netting just five goals and five assists in 48 games, and was often relegated to third- or fourth-line duty when in the line-up.

By sending Harper and a draft pick to the Islanders, the Flyers receive the exclusive negotiating rights to Streit before his five-year, $20.5 million contract expires July 5 and he becomes a free agent.

Holmgren told the Flyers' website his team would have been interested in Streit once he hit the open market, adding he was hopeful they could now sign him to a new deal before his current contract expires.

"Obviously I'm excited to get traded to Philadelphia," Streit told the Flyers' website. "I'm not sure what's going to happen ... but Philly has an unbelievable team. It's a great franchise and a great city and it's a hockey town for sure. The fans there are great and that's why I always liked playing in Philly. The team is really good. It's well-structured. It's young and fast and it would be a great honor to play for the Flyers."

However, Streit may not sign for cheap. The 35-year-old Switzerland native has produced 65 goals and 223 assists in 491 career NHL games with Montreal and the Islanders, stats that carry a tremendous value.

Streit's current contract paid him $4.1 million per year. Newsday, citing an anonymous source, reported earlier in June that the Islanders offered him new a three-year deal worth roughly $5 million per year, but Streit sought "north of $5.5 million per season." The NHL's salary cap will drop from $70.2 million to $64.3 million next season.

If Harper does sign with the Islanders, he could wind up with their AHL affiliate in Bridgeport, Conn. The Sound Tigers are currently in Adirondack's division.

"It might not happen, but I guess we'll see what happens in the next few days and weeks," Harper said. "I wouldn't want to be too excited, because if I didn't sign it would be a bummer."